While smash-and-grab robberies dominate headlines, your biggest losses can often come from lower-visibility thefts and highly coordinated burglary crews. Thefts reported to the Jewelers' Security Alliance every year remain staggering. According to the JSA annual report, a total of 1,233 jewelry store thefts were reported in 2025, resulting in $144.7 million in losses.
Each incident may represent a small dollar amount when compared to other types of crimes, but they add up fast. If you don't know what type of criminal behavior to be on the lookout for, these crimes will continue to nickel-and-dime the industry a few pieces at a time.
Keep these five types of jewelry store theft techniques on your radar and get in the habit of practicing preventative measures.
1. Sophisticated burglaries (highest financial impact)
Why this matters now
While retail thefts still occur most often during business hours, the largest financial losses to jewelry businesses now come from sophisticated burglaries, not grab-and-run thefts.
According to the Jewelers' Security Alliance (JSA) 2025 Annual Crime Report, on-premises burglaries accounted for the greatest dollar losses, totaling $19.9 million. Although overall crime incidents declined, burglary losses increased due to highly organized, well-equipped crews, according to JCK.
JSA reported a 165% increase in wall-entry burglaries, where criminals accessed stores through shared walls, rooftops or adjacent vacant spaces in 2024.
These groups often use:
- Construction disguises
- Power and internet disruption
- Wi-Fi jammers
- Torches and industrial cutting tools to attack safes and vaults
How to reduce burglary risk
- Install UL-rated safes and vaults appropriate to your inventory value.
- Reinforce your walls, ceilings and shared structures.
- Use redundant alarm systems and line security.
- Limit overnight merchandise left outside safes or vaults.
- Implement detection capabilities like AI cameras and jam guard technologies.
2. Grab-and-run theft
Grab-and-run thefts remain the most frequent jewelry crime, accounting for 65.1% of theft incidents in 2024, even though total occurrences have declined in recent years. Average loss per incident: $9,713. The decline is attributed partly to reduced face covering and improved in-store procedures.
What is a grab-and-run theft?
Criminals committing this type of crime will typically walk into a store, appearing to browse the merchandise. Usually, they move toward the most valuable merchandise on the showroom floor and ask to see a particular piece. From there, they simply run off with whatever they asked to view.
How do you prevent grab-and-run theft?
Ask to see a customer's ID before allowing the individual to try on merchandise, no matter what its value is. Once you've verified that the ID is legitimate, retain it until the customer has returned the piece. Remember to show an item only after you've examined the ID, though. Multitasking can be risky, because some grab-and-run attempts have featured suspects taking merchandise directly from the hands of sales associates before the ID was deemed legitimate.
Never show more than one piece at a time. If a customer is adamant about comparing pieces side by side, put one on yourself and let the customer compare. Never have more than two pieces out of your showcases at once, as some criminals are bold enough to attempt grab-and-run thefts with entire trays of rings.
Many criminals will appear nervous or fidgety before attempting a grab-and-run. Document suspicious incidents like these so if the suspect returns, the rest of your staff will know how to properly react.
3. Distraction theft
These types of thefts often come in waves depending on the activity of criminal groups where multiple people work together. However, they are less common and more difficult to execute.
What is distraction theft?
Distraction thefts are no longer limited to chaotic, opportunistic moments. JSA and industry reporting show these incidents are increasingly tied to organized theft groups, sometimes connected to the same networks responsible for sophisticated burglaries.
Criminals may:
- Enter in pairs or groups
- Create intentional confusion
- Exploit staffing gaps or peak traffic times
How do you prevent distraction theft?
Greeting every customer who enters your business is a good start — that way, any criminal will know you're attentive. From there, offer to help them on a one-to-one basis and stay focused on that customer until the individual has left. Politely remind others that you're in the process of helping someone and will be with them when you're available.
Don't feel ashamed to request help from a coworker to handle an influx of people. If your business has issues with handling crowds, you may need to consider a few more serious options:
- Merchandise handling policies are the most direct defense: limit the number of pieces out of the case at one time (a common standard is no more than three), never lay items flat on the glass, and return merchandise to the case immediately if interrupted for any reason.
- Employee communication signals are low-cost and highly effective: a simple code word or gesture system lets staff alert each other to suspicious behavior without tipping off the customer.
- Case alarms and anchored displays add a physical layer that doesn't rely on staffing levels, which makes them more reliable during busy periods.
- Clear sightlines — keeping displays low enough that staff can see the entire floor — are more practical than remodeling but achieve a similar outcome.
Lastly, don't forget to restrict access to your showcases. This means two things:
- Always keep your showcases locked, even when you're showing merchandise.
- Never allow your showcase keys to be accessible to anyone but store associates.
4. Sneak theft
What is sneak theft?
Like distraction theft, sneak theft involves a criminal attempting to overwhelm store associates but in a nonchalant, often solo fashion. Most commonly, the criminal tries on various pieces of merchandise, claiming they don't like the fit or style, and quietly pockets an item when they believe the associate isn't watching closely enough.
Sneak theft can also involve slipping a hand into an unlocked showcase while an associate is showing other pieces or snatching an item from a tray the moment an associate's back is turned. These crimes often go unnoticed until inventory reconciliation, making them particularly costly and difficult to prosecute.
According to JSA, theft — the broader category that includes sneak theft — totaled 849 reported incidents in 2024, making it the largest crime category overall.
How do you prevent sneak theft?
The same showcase restrictions that apply to distraction theft apply here, but showing only one item at a time is even more critical in this scenario. This can be difficult when you're on the verge of a sale and criminals know that, using it to guilt associates into showing multiple pieces at once.
Don't fall for it. A few key practices make a significant difference:
- Keep showcases locked at all times, even mid-transaction
- Show only one piece at a time and return it to the case before retrieving another
- Verify merchandise before and after every customer interaction
- Reinforce consistent handling procedures with all staff — not just during onboarding
Let customers know from the start that your business follows standard security procedures. To help communicate this, Jewelers Mutual provides displays, stickers and window clings for policyholders to reinforce the message before a transaction even begins.
5. Switch theft
Arguably the most difficult theft for criminals to pull off, this method is still one to keep an eye out for because if it does occur, it can be extremely costly.
What is switch theft?
After following the correct procedures of asking for ID, securing your showcases and showing only one item at a time, you might feel confident that there's little risk of having merchandise stolen.
However, sophisticated criminals have been known to switch real items with fakes from time to time. This takes an almost magical sleight of hand to accomplish, and it regularly involves loose stones. Occasionally, if a criminal has cased a business and tried on merchandise like rings, earrings and bracelets during earlier visits, that criminal may return with a lookalike and attempt a switch.
How do you prevent switch theft?
Other than intently watching your customers, the most surefire way is to always examine items using a loupe before and after someone else interacts with the piece. This technique is not only more effective but also less likely to make your customers uncomfortable than if you were to overtly study their every move.
But why loupe an item before showing it? This simply helps reassure you that what you're giving out is what you're getting back.
These are just a few common examples that have been observed in past crimes. However, if your associates have a strange feeling about a situation, urge them to document it in a suspicious incident log and begin to inform others at your business. You should also contact your local law enforcement and/or security company as soon as possible.
Whether you've had to face any of the five types of theft above, conflict or violence from events such as civil unrest or protest, or even loss suffered from a fire or natural disaster, handling the psychological impact may be difficult to do on your own. Seeking counseling from a professional can help aid in your emotional recovery.
Want to learn more on how you can keep your jewelry store safe 24/7? Read our comprehensive Jeweler Security Guide by clicking the button below.
Protect your jewelry business with Jewelers Mutual
No matter which of these theft tactics your store is most exposed to, Jewelers Mutual provides customizable jewelry business insurance designed to fit the specific needs of your operation, whether you run a small independent boutique or a major commercial showroom. Visit the Jewelers Mutual website today to learn more about keeping your business secure as you continue to grow.
This content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial, tax or professional advice.
